David Laird Adams (1837–1892) was a Scottish academic who was professor of

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

and

oriental languages A wide variety of languages are spoken throughout Asia, comprising different language families and some unrelated isolates. The major language families include Austroasiatic, Austronesian, Caucasian, Dravidian, Indo-European, Afroasiatic, Turk ...

at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

Life

He was born at Woodside in Blairgowrie, Perthshire on 18 February 1837.''Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae''; p. 387 Adams studied arts and divinity at the

, receiving a prize for

Biblical criticism Biblical criticism is the use of critical analysis to understand and explain the Bible. During the eighteenth century, when it began as ''historical-biblical criticism,'' it was based on two distinguishing characteristics: (1) the concern to ...

. In 1870 he was living in

Dollar, Clackmannanshire Dollar ( gd, Dolair) is a small town with a population of 2,800 people in Clackmannanshire, Scotland. It is east of Stirling. Toponymy Possible interpretations are that Dollar is derived from ''Doilleir'', an Irish and Scots Gaelic word mean ...

, and is thought to have been teaching

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

Dollar Academy Dollar Academy, founded in 1818 by John McNabb, is an independent co-educational day and boarding school in Scotland. The open campus occupies a site in the centre of Dollar, Clackmannanshire, at the foot of the Ochil Hills. Overview As of 20 ...

. He was ordained as a

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

minister at Monimail,

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

in 1875. In 1880 he replaced Prof David Liston as professor of Hebrew and Semitic Languages at the

. Adams introduced Syriac and Arabic to the syllabus. He was replaced by Prof John Dobie. He died at Primrose Villa, Victoria Park, in

Trinity, Edinburgh Trinity is a district of northern Edinburgh, Scotland, once a part of the burgh of Leith (itself a part of the city since 1920). It is one of the outer villa suburbs of Edinburgh mainly created in the 19th century. It is bordered by Wardie to ...

, on 2 August 1892.''Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae''; p. 385 He is buried in the south-east section of

Grange Cemetery The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hil ...

in south Edinburgh.

Family

He was married to Sarah Emma Child Sneezum (1842–1899). They had several children: William David Adams (d. 1927); Charles Walter Adams; Edward Francis Adams; Herbert Frederick Wilfred Adams; Euphemia Laird Adams (1870-1916); and Louisa Emma Adams. Louisa married

George Washington Browne Sir George Washington Browne (21 September 1853 – 15 June 1939) was a Scottish architect. He was born in Glasgow, and trained there and in London. He spent most of his career in Edinburgh, although his work can be found throughout Scotland a ...

in 1905.

Artistic recognition

A sketch of Prof Adams by

William Brassey Hole William Brassey Hole RSA (7 November 1846 – 22 October 1917) was a Scottish artist, illustrator, etcher, and engraver, known for his industrial, historical and biblical scenes. Life Early life and training Hole was born in Salisbury, ...

is held by the

Scottish National Portrait Gallery The Scottish National Portrait Gallery is an art museum on Queen Street, Edinburgh. The gallery holds the national collections of portraits, all of which are of, but not necessarily by, Scots. It also holds the Scottish National Photography Co ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, David Laird 1837 births 1892 deaths People from Blairgowrie and Rattray 19th-century Scottish clergy Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Academics of the University of Edinburgh